Karachi: According to news reports, Pakistan received a total of $21.84 billion in foreign remittance during FY2018-19 – 3% more than the set target of $21.2 billion for the said fiscal year. The surplus amount totalled at around $640 million, while the inflow was found to be 10% higher than that of the previous year (2017-2018) – which amounted to $19.91 billion.
An official of a state-owned bank informed that the depreciation of the Pakistan rupee to the ‘PKR 160 – USD 1’ mark seen during the previous year had increased the value of foreign currency being sent into the country.
Higher job opportunities along with better economic conditions in developing (predominantly western) countries, such as the UK and the USA, are reported to have contributed to this increase. Furthermore, the cessation of the financial crisis in oil producing countries in the Gulf also led to this dollar-rupee parity escalation, owing to the fact that a large number of overseas Pakistanis reside in this region
